Tap dancing device



April 5, 1938. M. c. GILMAN TAP DANCING DEVICE Filed Feb. 25, 1937 Max C. Gilman ATTORNEYS Patented pr. 5, 1938 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFlCE Y 2,113,477 l TAP miNoiNdl DEvIoE MaxCarl Gilman, Brooklyn, N. Y. Application Febr-naw 25, 1937', seriall No. 127,752"

Z' Claims.

The present invention relates'to tap dancing devices affording dependable means for retaining the tap onto the conventional shoe while presenting a dance performance.

It has heretofore been the practice to permanently attach the dancing tap onto the sole or tipof a dancing shoe, thus necessitating a substantial alteration of the shoes and rendering same impractical for other purposes, such as ballet and acrobatic dancing. Permanently affixed taps were secured to the shoe as by means of screws or nails which, due to the excessive strain during dancing, have become loosened and resuited in an annoying condition to the dancer. In view of the fact that tap dancing has become highly specialized it is necessary for the dancer in order to present a successful appearance, to be able to proceed with the dance routine without fear of the tap becoming loosened or dislodgment of the screws or nails.

In view of such conditions it is the primary object of this invention to provide a tap dancing device readily adapted for attachment to the usualshoe or a ballet and acrobatic dancing shoe, the same being attached in such manner as to retain the attractive appearance of'the shoe and at the same time afford means for rapidly removing the dancing tap.v

Another object is to provide a device of this character including an overshoe or sandal structure to the sole of which the tap is securely attached as by being embedded in the material of which the sole is fabricated or by securely riveting thetap thereto, thus obviating the chance of the attachment means becoming loosened.

A further object of the invention is to provide a novel form of dancing tap in association with asandal structure for attachment to a shoe, the assembled arrangement effecting a hollow sound box formation whereby to produce a distinctive and reverberating tap sound emanating from the sound box.

The invention will be fully and comprehensively understood from a consideration of the following detailed description when read in connection with the accompanying drawing which forms part of the application.

In the drawing:

Fig. l is a perspective view of a conventional or dancing shoe illustrating the manner of wearing the tap dancing device thereon.

Fig. 2 is a bottom elevational view of the detached tap dancing device apart from the shoe and illustrating the arrangement of the taps thereon.

(clisis-'8.3)

Fig; 3 is a longitudinal section thru the vice taken on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2.

Fig; 4' is a'perspective view of' the toe tap apart from the device and illustrating the formation of the upper surface to provide a sound box; and' Fig. 5v is a view similar to Fig. 4 but illustrating the medial tap apart from the device.

Referring now to the drawing for a more dev tailed description thereof, it will be observed that the tap dancing device comprises a sandal or substantially open overshoe adapted for convenient attachment to a 4conventional shoe by being slippedover the forward portion thereof, as shown in Fig. l. The sandal is preferably fabrica-ted of an elastic material such as rubber. and is Ishaped and proportioned to an average size of shoe so as to be adaptable for iitting on shoes of` all sizes. 'Ihe mentioned sandal includes a sole structure 6 having at the forward end a toe cap 'I and presenting at the remaining periphery a projecting ange 8, the latter being extendedv at the rear portion of the sandal to provide an arch strap 9. It will be noted' that the entire sandal, being formed as by molding, presents a composite structure in which the members l, 8 and il are integral parts of the sole 6.

To the forward part of the sandal sole 6 is secured a toe tap lll defining in outline substantially the contour of the marginal edgevof'the forward portion of the sandal sole and including lateral rearwardly extending wings lil. As illustrated in Fig. 4, the tap il) includes a series of studs I l projecting from the upper surface therefor" to provide means forattachment of the `tap to the sandal. The tap il? is preferably formed by casing a metallic material, in which instance the studs l! are cast integrall therewith. As illustratedl in Fig. 3, the studs l! are vinserted in corresponding holes inthe sole E of thev sandal and `are securely aflixed therein by surrounding each stud I! by a washer or burr l2 and thereafter heading over the end of the stud Il.

As aforementioned, the toe tap l0 presents a sound box arrangement in association with the sole 6 of the sandal. Accordingly, the intermediate area I3 of the tap Hl at the upper surface is recessed substantially from the marginal portions 14 so that a substantial area of the tap l0 is spaced apart from the sandal sole 6 thus forming a sound box l5 therebetween. When the tap itl is afxed to the sandal sole 6 the sound box l5 will cause a clear resonant sound which is ordinarily difficult to receive from the presenttype tap. As will be understood, the close relalli tion be'twe'en the sole of the sandaland the tap I0 will conne the sound of the tap within the chamber I5 thereby allowing the dancer to obtain full benefit of the sound of the tap during the dance routine. The taps at present inuse have a tendency to loosen from the sole of the dancers shoe thereby permitting the sound to escape thru the countersunk holes of the taps.

llhe sound effect of the tap I0 is augmented by a sub-stantially .elongated medial or repeat tap IS secured to the sandal sole in spaced relation to the tap I Il and preferably at the metatarsal of the sale 6 to extend across the same, but terminates inwardly of the outer edges thereof. The repeat tap IS is enlarged inwardly of its ends to provide convexly curved forwardly and rearwardly extending portions I5', and the central point of the forwardly convexly curved portion is longitudinally aligned substantially with the central point of the edge defining the space between the wings Ill', to provide ample space between the taps ID and IS, yet allowing for the particular shape thereof, as shown, which is desired in performing many steps in tap dancing. It will be obvious that the repeat tap I6 affords the dancer the opportunity of performing the modern type dancing since he is able to execute extra taps which are difficult to accomplish without the use of the medial or repeat tap. The tap I 6 is attached to the sandal in a manner similar to the attachment of the tap I0, the same being provided with integral studs I'I for that purpose. During tap dancing, the repeat tap I6 tends to augment the sound produced by the toe tap I0 so as to render a rapid succession of tapping sounds particularly effective in performing the more spectacular steps known professionally as the cramp roll and the time step roll. Such steps are particularly dicult to execute with the usual type dancing shoes primarily because of the absence of the repeat tap thereon. Should the repeat tap be attached to the usual shoe in the manner of attaching the present type of tap, it is exceedingly uncomfortable to the dancer. The portion I6' of the sandal shoe 6 is preferably roughened so as to prevent the dancer from slipping on the dancing surface in that the dancer may bring that portion of the sandal sole into contact with the dance floor.

The primary advantage of the tap dancing device herein described is had in View of the facility with which the entire sandal including the taps may be readily removed from the shoe, thus permitting a quick change of the tap equipment as required for example, in a dance of another type. The elasticity of the rubber sandal also permits the toe tap Ill to be urged rearwardly when the dancer is executing a dance on the toes thereby causing an extra tapping sound to emit when the dancer moves the feet back to normal position. This is caused by the rubber material contracting to its normal size thereby carrying with it the tap.

The herein described tap is also beneficial from a health standpoint. As is well-known, during the execution of a dance routine there is a tendency for the feet of the dancer to perspire and it quite frequently occurs that the interior of the shoe after a routine is exceedingly moist. The dancer is therefore obliged to either possess a 4number of pairs of shoes having taps thereon or re-use shoes that have not sufficiently dried. By the use of the herein described invention, the

,sandal may be attached to any pair of shoes and transferred to other shoes in a minimum amount of time.

It is to be understood that this improvement is capable of extended application and is not confined to the exact showing of the drawing nor to the precise construction described and, therefore, such changes and modifications may be made vtherein as do not affect the spirit of the invention nor exceed the scope thereof as expressed in the appended claims.

What is claimed as new is:

l. A dancing sandal made from elastic material for disposal over a shoe to snugly t the same and comprising a sole of a length to extend from the toe to the shank portion of the shoe sole, said sandal sole having holes extending therethrough, means for securing the sandal to the shoe, dancing taps mounted on the under surface of the sandal sole, studsformed on the taps and extending through the holes, a washer at and surrounding the inner end of each hole and countersunk into the upper face of the sandal sole, and said studsl being headed onto said washers for securing the taps to the sandal sole.

2. A dancing sandal made from elastic material for disposal over a shoe to snugly t the same and comprising a sole of a length to extend from the toe to the shank portion of the shoe sole, means for securing the sandal to the shoe, a chambered toe tap shaped to fit the under surface of the forward portion of the sandal sole and xed thereto, lateral rearwardly extending diverging wings included in the toe tap, an elongated tap xed to the under surface of the sandal sole in spaced relation to the toe tap and cooperating therewith to produce tapping sounds when the sandal is in use, said elongated tap extending r across the metatarsal portion of the sandal sole and having its ends terminating inwardly of the outer edges thereof, and said elongated tap being enlarged inwardly of its ends to provide convexly curved forwardly and rearwardly extending portions and the central point of the forwardly convexly curved portion being longitudinally aligned substantially with the central point of the edge defining the space between the wings.

MAX CARL GILMAN. 

